This invention relates generally to video production, and, in particular, to a system and methods which personalize a pre-recorded video story having unfinished segments using captured imagery, sound, or other effects.
It is now possible to personalize certain consumer products once constrained to having a dedicated message. Hallmark Cards, for example, now provides a computer-controlled machine for vending personalized greeting cards. As described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,036,472, this system, configured in the form of a kiosk, provides specific instructions to a customer so, as to personalize a greeting card with the name and birthdate of an intended receiver, the name of the sender, and so forth. The data entering mode may further include operations for viewing and correction of the entered data. Upon final approval, a product handling mechanism prints the customized card and transfers the finished item to a delivery receptacle.
Additionally Hallmark is now advertising a greeting card that may be customizable with sound. In this product, a voice is recorded during a record mode and stored in a solid-state integrated circuit supported within the card. Following this record mode, when the recipient opens the card, the person hears a replay of the greeting previously stored by the sender.
In addition to the personalization of greeting cards and other communications products available in printed form, it would be advantageous and entertaining to provide video based materials having a personalized format. However, compared to the customization of a greeting card, the customization of a video-based product, including both motion imagery and sound recording, presents serious technical challenges. On the one hand, it is readily possible to produce an entirely customized video, but this requires uninitiated participants to become actors and, as anyone skilled in the art of video production is aware, very few people are capable of spontaneously performing in a way which will sustain the interest of an intended audience for any length of time. As a consequence, a system that relies entirely upon the operator for a performance will undoubtedly suffer from poor quality. Also, the recording of a completely customized video product requires that the recording process consume as much time or more than final playback, which may be unsuitable for certain consumer applications, including kiosk-like installations.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,099,337 xe2x80x9cMethod And Apparatus For Producing Customized Video Recordingsxe2x80x9d illustrates the degree of sophistication required in a system capable of producing an entirely customized video recording. This patent teaches audio/video reproduction equipment for displaying prompt information, including an audio signal used for synchronization. A first video signal representative of background information and a second video audio signal are combined along with creative modifications which may be subsequently added. The purpose of this prior-art system is not to reduce the demands on the performer, but rather to provide a smaller, more manageable apparatus which will create an open atmosphere for a more or less professional recording.
There is therefore remaining a need for a method and apparatus for producing customized video recordings which place less responsibility on the individual acting as the object of the personalization. This could be carried out by providing a non-personalized base video recording, for example in the form of a story with pre-existing characters and voice tracks, but with one or more segments being left unfinished for personalization purposes. With a sufficiently straightforward human interface, such a system would allow completely unsophisticated performers, including children, to personalize the final product. Also, by intentionally personalizing only a portion of the entire production, less time should be required for recording than for playback.
The present invention provides apparatus and methods for the efficient production of personalized video stories. The method includes the steps of prerecording a non-personalized video story having one or more uncompleted segments to be personalized. An edit list is also prepared to locate each uncompleted segment. Digital sequences are personalized, and the non-personalized story is sequentially advanced to each segment in accordance with the edit list and, at each segment, the personalized sequences are recorded to complete the story.
In a preferred embodiment the method is used to produce a personalized video product, for example a video tape in cassette form, though other formats, including CD-ROMs, are equally applicable. A plurality of different stories may be prerecorded, each substantially completed but including at least one unfinished segment. A separate edit list is prepared and stored for each story so as to locate the unfinished segments for that story. The stories may include animation, for example in the form of cartoons. The digitized sequences are stored to complete the segments in a particular story, the sequences including, for example, the representation of a character in the story. A visual template to personalize the character is also preferably made available.
Having selected an uncompleted story, personalizing information is captured and merged with the sequences to complete each unfinished segment. As an example, the facial likeness of a subject may be captured and aligned relative to a character in the story using the template so as to give the character the likeness of the subject. The personalized sequences are recorded within each unfinished segment of the prerecorded video story in accordance with the edit list for that story, thereby completing the story in such a way that a viewer is left with the impression that the subject appears to be a character in the story. The segments are recorded onto the previously uncompleted tape so that a smooth visual transition is realized at the start and ending of each segment. In addition to imagery, the invention also accommodates personalized audio, including narration, and textual information, such as captioning.